Student Speaks Out On Ten Key Issues

San Bernardino Valley Community College student Cassandra Leimel, who is Co-Director of Student Organizations for the campaign of Richard David Boyle, issued a list of the top ten concerns and received an email from Interim Chancellor, Bruce Baron, who said, “I like the ideas, and I am happy to start working on some of them because they make sense.” Leimel and Co-Director Paul Sanchez, also a student at Valley, are asking students what they want from the new college board, and are making lists of issues that should be addressed. The election is on November 2 to elect three members of the college governing board and Boyle is running a campaign to cut waste and political corruption.

“I think we should listen to the students,” said Boyle, who is also President of Teachers for a Change, a grassroots advocacy foundation dedicated to cutting waste in spending and improving conditions for students, as well as hiring more teachers and opening more badly needed classes. “Cassandra and Paul are brilliant students and I am glad to have them working on our campaign to not only bring change, but to bring badly needed bold new ideas from both students and teachers, which are often ignored,” said Boyle. Boyle last week spoke to students at Valley’s acting and directing class about an agreement with a top director to begin shooting of the film he wrote with his daughter, Dominique Swain, entitled, “Rewind, Diary of a Young Girl.”

Boyle said today he agrees with Attorney General Jerry Brown’s investigation of high salaries of some office holders making more than $300,000, but questioned the $332,000 budgeted for Matthew Lee, an outside consultant hired by the college district to try to put a public relations spin giving reasons why Crafton Hills College is on probation and could in theory lose accreditation. The district budgeted over $2 million for outside consultants, while firing teachers and shutting down badly needed classes. “Brown should investigate the college district,” said Boyle, “but will not because he is bank rolled by Indian gambling casinos who openly flaunt Federal laws against murder, drug dealing and money laundering for the Mexican Mafia.” Boyle’s opponent, James Ramos, is tribal chair of the San Manuel tribe and casino, which was investigated by Federal DEA agents in 2007 and was implicated police in the murder of James Seay. District Attorney Mike Ramos refused to press charges against the two gunmen police say killed Seay after he sued and won a settlement against a gunman connected with the casino. DA Ramos has received large donations from the casino and tribe.

Leimel listed these ten concerns:

Transportation: free OmniTrans bus rides serving both Crafton and SBVC students, during the duration of each semester (fall, spring, and summer sessions);

Increase recycling usage on campus and in the classroom;

Offer weekly/monthly self-defense classes to ALL female students at no cost;

Provide a quiet/resting place for students as a substitution to the Student Lounge (perhaps a spare room in the library?);

Organize a monthly public student forum, for those who cannot attend the SBCCD’s Board of Trustees meetings; and it would be a great opportunity for students to address certain issues to a trustee and/or a representative from any campus office facility, i.e., financial aid;

Decrease the waiting line and improving person-to-person communication at SBVC Financial Aid. This has been an on-going problem and a lot students need prompt, and friendly customer service;

Reduce (more like eliminate) the cost of overly-priced textbooks and offer an alternative to download from online, rather than cutting down trees and causing harm toward the environment;

Mitigating the parking problem on both campuses;

Upgrade the parking meters to accept both cash and credit;

Arrange fieldtrips to invite middle/high school students (especially in various school districts) to tour the KVCR TV and Radio station and Media Communications Center;

Boyle thanked Leimel for her thoughtful suggestions and added there should be toilet paper in the men’s restroom and a spray mist machine for students waiting in the financial aid office. Boyle met recently with President Debra Daniels to discuss issues such as job training for veterans at no cost to taxpayers and creating a half hour news program through the campus television station, KVCR. See: www.teachersforachange.biz